HR185-119

What This Bill Does

The Responsible Legislating Act is a large multi-title package. Agriculture provisions extend livestock mandatory reporting authorities through 2025. Veterans and workforce provisions require Labor's Veterans' Employment and Training Service, with VA, to provide a searchable apprenticeship website for veterans with occupation, location, cost, contact, credential, VSO endorsement, and veteran-hiring preference information. Federal workforce provisions protect injured law enforcement officers, CBP officers, firefighters, air traffic controllers, nuclear materials couriers, Supreme Court police, Capitol Police, and diplomatic security special agents who move to non-covered civil service positions after duty-related illness or injury by preserving covered-position retirement treatment in specified circumstances. The retirement-security title adds automatic enrollment rules for 401(k) and 403(b) plans, expands small employer pension startup credits and contribution credits, promotes and enhances the saver's credit, updates 403(b) investment options, raises required minimum distribution ages to 73, 74, and 75 over time, indexes IRA catch-up limits, adds higher catch-up limits for ages 62 through 64, revises pooled employer and multiple employer plan rules, treats qualified student loan payments as elective deferrals for matching contributions, creates a military spouse retirement plan eligibility credit, improves correction rules, expands part-time worker coverage, updates ESOP rules, removes annuity and QLAC barriers, limits overpayment recoupment, reduces certain accumulation excise taxes, requires disclosure review and paper statements, creates a retirement savings lost-and-found, expands EPCRS, permits domestic abuse penalty-free withdrawals, updates hardship withdrawals, Roth SIMPLE and SEP IRAs, and optional Roth matching contributions. Other titles authorize Boots to Business entrepreneurship training through September 30, 2028; create a privately funded commission to study a National Museum of Asian Pacific American History and Culture; direct SelectUSA to work with state economic development organizations on semiconductor foreign direct investment and report to Congress; require FEMA to use a uniform process for homeland security grant equipment that does not meet voluntary consensus standards; add House rules protecting whistleblower identities; require a Federal Maritime Commission study of foreign ownership at the 15 largest U.S. container ports; and reduce Federal credit union board meeting frequency for well-rated credit unions while retaining monthly meetings for de novo or weaker-rated institutions.

Who Benefits and How

Retirement savers benefit from automatic enrollment, stronger saver's credit rules, student-loan match treatment, later RMD ages, lost-and-found support, and domestic abuse withdrawal relief. Small employers benefit from expanded pension startup credits, contribution credits, pooled plan changes, and military spouse retirement eligibility credits. Veterans and transitioning servicemembers benefit from apprenticeship information, Boots to Business entrepreneurship training, and programs tied to veteran hiring and credentials. Injured federal public-safety employees benefit from retirement protection when duty-related illness or injury forces transfer out of a covered position. Asian Pacific American history advocates benefit from a commission studying a national museum without obligating federal funds. Semiconductor manufacturers and state economic development agencies benefit from SelectUSA coordination on foreign direct investment. Federal credit unions benefit from less frequent board meeting requirements when they are seasoned and well-rated.

Who Bears the Burden and How

Treasury, Labor, VA, SBA, Commerce, FEMA, the Federal Maritime Commission, and credit union regulators receive new rulemaking, reporting, website, grant, coordination, or administrative duties. Employers sponsoring retirement plans must implement automatic enrollment, paper statements, student-loan matching, correction, hardship, Roth, and disclosure changes when applicable. Federal taxpayers bear revenue loss and administrative cost from retirement tax credits, saver's credit changes, RMD changes, refunds, and agency implementation. House Members and staff face restrictions on public disclosure of whistleblower identities and personally identifiable information. Foreign owners of marine terminals at major U.S. ports face economic-security scrutiny from the mandated study.

Key Provisions

• Extends livestock mandatory reporting through 2025 and requires a veteran apprenticeship website.
• Protects retirement treatment for injured federal public-safety employees transferred out of covered positions.
• Expands automatic enrollment, retirement plan credits, saver incentives, student-loan matching, catch-up contributions, RMD ages, lost-and-found, EPCRS, hardship, Roth, and domestic abuse withdrawal rules.
• Authorizes Boots to Business and creates an Asian Pacific American museum study commission.
• Requires SelectUSA semiconductor investment coordination, FEMA equipment review processes, foreign port ownership study, House whistleblower identity protections, and credit union board meeting updates.